Technology vs. Pretty

During the continued saga of the Completely Unnecessary Master Bedroom Re-Do, we needed to deal with the television. Here we are, creating this serene, shabby elegant haven; full of white and natural linen, softly worn looking furniture, beautiful wood….and then BAM, there’s the TV.

Absolutely NOT sitting on those spectacular ‘new’ dressers, that’s fo’sure. So, we mounted the TV on the curved wall, yes, curved wall….how do you even do anything with acurvedwall? So great in theory, so awkward in reality.

So, TV went up. Enter the awesome step stool underneath it to hold the cable box. LO.V.E. it.
Clearly, we needed a shelf on the curved wall for the cable box, and more importantly (of course); we needed to design something that would ‘fit’ with the overall vibe of the room.

THIS is what we created (and by we, I mean me….because The Mister was SO not ‘getting’ this).
Despite his misgivings and doubt, he did provide labour.
Labour full of skepticism and wariness.HAHA Mister:

Here’s how we did it:

The design had to be vertical to easily work with the curve. Once we determined the overall height & width we wanted, we cut 1×6 pine fence boards to length. I wanted them uneven and very imperfect. We used a chisel to really beat up the edges, so that when we I finished them, the paint and stain would sit in those crevices.

Spacers were cut from the same boards to sit behind each plank, raising them from the wall out slightly, but also to give the planks something really substantial to affix to.
The middle board was cut in half, so that it could butt up against each side of the TV wall bracket.

Now comes the nightmare of figuring out which cords go where. The cords going from the TV to the electrical outlet were left hanging so they’d lay flat behind the plank. The cords going from the TV to the cable box had to come through the bottom plank where the box would be sitting on a shelf. We drilled three holes to pull them out the front.

Once that’s all figured out, and there’s been a satisfactory amount of cursing and exasperation (and the words “this is never going to work and will be a total waste” were uttered), the board below the TV wall bracket is slid into place (over the cords) and screwed on.

Boards installed, cable box shelf on, 3 more shelves to add, and almost ready to paint.

Here’s views of the small upper shelves, but all the shelves were affixed the same way:

Blocks of 4×4 posts were cut diagonally in half for the shelf supports, screwed into the plank, and then down through the shelf.
Counter sink all the screws, fill with wood putty & sand smooth.

The longer bottom shelf spans across the curve, so we traced the curve onto the plank, and used the jigsaw cut it out.

Once everything has been primed (Zinsser Cover Stain Primer) and painted two coats, it’s time to create some shabby elegance. All the chippy bits we created on the ends with the chisel are perfect to work with. I also sanded off some edges, corners, the gaps between the boards, etc. Apply some dark stain (I use latex) to these areas, then wipe off. It looks terrible after this step, but don’t worry. Go back over these areas with an almost dry brush and your paint. Lightly feather over the uneven and sanded parts, and apply it a bit heavier in the surrounding areas, covering any area with too much stain.

OhEmGee could this post be any longer….

The doing, way easier than the explaining.

But that’s it. Now have fun styling & pretty-ing the shelves! A vintage blue mason jar with some wildflowers, a tiny tin bucket, and a rustic glass & metal candle holder are perfect (for the moment, I’m a perpetual Re-styler).

Hi. I love your technology versus pretty way of mounting the TV on the wall board. I have a few questions. How big was your TV and what type of wall mount did you buy for mounting the TV? Thanks! Love it!

The boards have to be a thickness that makes sense with your tv wall mount bracket – so if the bracket is 3″ out from the wall (for example), then you have to account for the ‘spacers’ behind each board, and the plank thickness, so that the TV is not now inside a box – does that make sense?